I Dare You to Kiss Me
by SpideychelleCarwheelerTrash
Summary: With Liz Allan playing matchmaker, a party over summer vacation is about to get very interesting for Peter and MJ... ... Especially when a game of truth or dare is involved.
1. I Dare You

Peter could already tell that the party was going to be amazing.

He wasn't even entirely sure that he was invited- well, he'd sort of been? Ned and Peter had been invited by Betty Brant, who had been invited by Liz, who was back in town for a week this summer. Liz had been invited by some guy named Ricardo, who had been invited by Theresa Pickerton, and so on. But it didn't matter, he reasoned as he pulled on a button-up shirt in his room and rolled up the sleeves. This wasn't the sort of party that used invitations.

This was the kind of party that people went to just to have a good time, though sometimes that ended up with a lot of regrets being revealed by the morning sun.

Peter finished getting ready, running a hand nervously through his hair as he looked into the mirror. He was a little more well-dressed than he was normally. It was an attempt to look relaxed and casual, and he didn't think that he'd done half bad.

He was just steeling himself to pull on his jacket and leave when May called out through his door. "Peter, Ned's here!"

Peter glanced down at his watch and took a deep breath, moving to open the door. When he did, May's eyes widened. "Oh, honey, you look great!" she exclaimed. "Go on, turn around. I want to see it from behind, too."

Peter let out a groan and failed to hide a grin as he slowly revolved in a circle. When he turned around, May was nodding in approval. "Mhmm, it's perfect," she informed him. "The sleeves are a nice touch, girls like that." May paused for a moment, ruffling her long hair as she grasped for something else to say. She seemed unsure what to do in this situation; granted, Peter hadn't gone to enough parties for this to be a regular thing.

"So, a party, right? Fun! You said Liz is going to be there?" Her eyes were curious, and he knew that she was trying to pin down exactly what was happening tonight.

If he was being honest, Peter didn't know how he felt about it either. Liz had left with her world destroyed. He had not exactly helped to make it any easier to deal with by ditching her at homecoming. Of course, it was to take down her super-villain dad, but even if she knew, he didn't know if she would understand or if she would just slap him.

"Yeah," he admitted. "But I don't-I don't know." He ran a hand through his hair again, running it through his head. "I think I'm over her, you know? I mean, it sucked that she left, but I don't think that we would have been able to make it work anyway. But..."

"But you had a crush on her for a while," May finished, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "And even if you don't like her anymore, what's wrong with impressing her a little bit? You never know."

Peter grinned slightly up at her. "Yeah, exactly," he agreed.

May leaned over and wrapped him in a quick hug before letting him go with a pat on the back. "Have fun," she encouraged. "That's an order. But be careful, too... I mean, it's a party. Make good choices. Drug records don't ever go away, honey, and your brain is still developing, so alcohol is a bad idea-"

"I know, I know," Peter said quickly. "I don't even think it's that kind of party, I promise. But Ned and I are gonna stay together, and I'll be careful. I promise."

May scanned his face one last time, and she seemed satisfied with his candor as she moved to let him step into the hallway. "Okay, good. Now you two have fun."

"We will," Peter conceded, grinning. "Bye, Aunt May."

"See ya later," she chirped. As Peter moved to walk down the hall to meet Ned in the living room, she added, "Go get 'em, Tiger!"

Sure enough, Ned was waiting for Peter with his signature fedora, and when he looked up his eyes were wide with excitement. "Are you ready?" He asked, eagerly beginning to walk towards the door. "The cab's downstairs, and we're all set to go."

Peter followed, and as they began to walk down the steps to exit the apartment, he grinned. "Yeah, of course I am! This is going to be awesome," he promised. "So you have the address, right?"

"Yeah," Ned confirmed as they stepped onto the street and climbed into the cab. "It's a house party, in that one neighborhood where the houses are huge. It's gonna be huge."

"Cool," Peter said as the cab began to move. "So, did you text Betty at all?" Another major reason Peter was going to this party was because of Ned, who had liked Betty for a while now. This had been a major thing for him, and Peter knew that Ned really wanted to impress her tonight.

"Yeah, we texted a lot sounds like she's already there, and there's apparently a ton of food-"

As Ned rambled on about the party, Peter listened and watched out the window. Sure enough, the houses outside began to get nicer until he was pretty sure that three families could have lived in one of them. After maybe twenty minutes, the cab pulled up on the curb next to one of them. It was huge, and it looked insanely fancy. Peter could already hear the bass-line of whatever song was playing, and there were lights flashing in the windows.

Peter and Ned paid the driver before climbing out of the cab, hesitating on the doorstep for a minute. Peter took a deep breath and glanced over at his best friend. "You ready?"

Ned looked nervous, but he resolutely tugged down his fedora and nodded. "Of course," he confirmed. "Let's do this thing, man."

The two of them walked up the steps and tried the door handle. It was completely unlocked, so they stepped inside. Immediately, warmth rushed over the pair of them, along with the pounding music. Peter recognized the song as something that had been playing on the radio, but he didn't know it very well. The lights were low, but there was a DJ who was flashing a lighting system along with the music. The speakers blared and the noise was enough to wash away all thought.

The party was massive.

"Whoa!" Ned called over the music as the door swung shut behind them. "This is the real thing!"

Peter's eyes scanned the rooms. They were on the main floor, but a spiral staircase led both down to a basement and to an upper level. The whole place was open-concept, and Peter could see that the largest amount of people were gathered near the DJ, dancing.

"Do you think Betty is over there?" Ned asked, and Peter nodded.

"Yeah, I think that's your best bet, man," Peter agreed loudly. "Come on, let's go!"

The two began to navigate through the crowd of people towards the dance floor, and Peter found that he understood why people came to these. It would be so easy to get lost in all of the people, just watching and listening and existing in the middle of something bigger.. Peter thought that he could've gotten lost in it if Ned wasn't there. It would definitely be nice to come to something like this and just sit after a rough night out 'spidering.'

It took them a minute to maneuver through the crowd, since everyone was focusing on where they were going and not on their surroundings. After a moment of shoving their way through people, Peter and Ned reached the edge of the dance floor. For a moment, Peter got caught up in watching the surging mass of people, all moving to the same song. It was hypnotic, the way that a huge mass had all come together to do the same thing of their own accord. Peter did not notice at first that Ned's jaw had dropped to the ground until his best friend's voice reached his ears.

"Holy crap… No way."

Peter glanced over at his friend, assuming that he'd spotted Betty. He was worried that something was wrong based on the way that Ned was gaping. "What?" He asked over the music, turning to follow Ned's line of sight.

As soon as he saw her, his heart skipped a music was suddenly drowned out by the blood roaring in his ears.

Dancing in the middle of the floor, beside Liz Toomes, was MJ. With her loose curls forming a dark halo around her face, she looked incredible.

For a moment, Peter barely recognized her. MJ's hair was loose, and Peter had not ever realized how long it was. She was dressed up, though in a very 'MJ' way, with a pair of jeans and booties on where most of the girls were wearing dresses. Somehow, she didn't look underdressed at all. Peter thought that it was because she was so at ease in her own skin, whether she was wearing jeans, a dress, or even her decathlon uniform. She wore a white top with thin straps beneath a leather jacket, which gave her an edge that Peter knew wasn't obvious to those who hadn't interacted with her. She even wore a bit of makeup, including red lipstick that Peter couldn't seem to look away from.

It wasn't that MJ didn't usually look good, of course. MJ was easily one of the prettiest girls in the school, in Peter's opinion. It was just that she didn't normally flaunt it, preferring to go without makeup and show her own quirky sort of style. Personally, Peter thought that her taste was great, and that the way that she was comfortable in herself was amazing. But tonight, she was comfortable in a different way.

The funny thing was that it wasn't the way she was dressed that stunned Peter, it was the way that she was carrying herself. He didn't think he'd ever seen MJ as relaxed as she was now, with her eyes closed and moving to the music. Peter hadn't seen her dance before, not even at homecoming- probably because he left halfway through to beat the crap out of the murderous, metallic version of Big Bird, but that was beside the point. Here, on the dance floor, she moved as if the music was pulsing through her, mingled with her blood. It was so natural, it almost looked like she wasn't even trying. Her eyes were closed and one of her hands was in her hair. She was even smiling, something that Peter had never seen her do like this before.

Everything about her had him starstruck.

"...Peter? Peter!"

Peter blinked several times and shook his head slightly, looking back over at Ned. If he had looked stunned before, now he looked positively alarmed. Ned had called out to Peter just as the music ended, leaving a slight gap of silence in the music. When she heard Ned's voice, MJ's eyes snapped open. Liz, who stood beside MJ, glanced over at the pair of boys, and a smile bloomed on her face.

"You made it!" she exclaimed, moving to leave the floor to approach them. Liz linked her arm with MJ's causing the girl to stumble off of the dance floor with her. MJ's eyes were wide, and Peter could practically see the gears turning in her head as she struggled to figure out what to do. He couldn't help but feel like he had intruded on a private moment, like catching someone singing to themself in the car or something. He didn't know how to react at the moment, still momentarily struck dumb, so he was grateful for Liz's energetic, authoritative presence. "I was hoping you could come."

MJ finally seemed to regain her composure, turning to face Liz. "Wait… You knew they were coming?" she asked as the music began to blare again,

Liz gave MJ an innocent smile. "Yeah… I invited Betty, and she invited them. I thought it would be a fun surprise."

MJ seemed just about ready to speak again, but Ned chose that moment to pipe up, "Right. Um, it's really good to see you, Liz! How's Oregon?"

"It's alright," she said with a nod and a little smile. "But I've missed decathlon. Anyway, do you guys want to-"

At that moment, someone called something from the staircase, and some people moved to leave the floor. "What was that?" Ned called.

"Oh, it's time for party games!" Liz exclaimed. "Come on, let's go! Unless any of you are too scared to play truth or dare, that is." Her eyes seemed to sparkle with mischief as they turned towards Peter.

Peter did not know why, but when he spoke, his eyes drifted to meet MJ's own wide brown irises, framed with long, dark lashes. "I'm ready for anything."


	2. To Kiss Me

MJ was ready to murder Liz Allan, and it would be a very public, brutal affair.

When Liz had informed MJ that she was coming back for a week over break, it had been quite difficult for MJ to hide her excitement. Though she managed to keep her emotions under control, MJ's pleasure leaked out in other ways. She knew that Leeds and Parker had picked up on it, though MJ had done her best not to make too many mistakes. Still, she had accidentally left a feel-good playlist on while she drove the three of them to May's. By the time Ned had stumbled out of the car, she was fairly sure he was ready to dial a hotline for paranormal activity.

MJ had never had a best friend, but Liz was the closest thing that qualified. After she had left Midtown, Liz had texted with MJ a lot until they became quite close. It was good for Liz to have someone to talk to her through all the chaos of her new life in liked having someone to talk to about her life who was removed from the situations. Besides, Liz thought her dry humor was funny, and she was perfectly willing to join in on MJ's rants about social justice. So, when Liz had offered to have MJ over for a sleepover and to take her to a party after, of course MJ had said yes.

It would be nice, MJ had reasoned, to go to a part that wasn't with the people from Midtown Tech. It would be a whole room full of new people who didn't know about her reputation. She could take her hair down- figuratively and literally. It would be a chance to disappear in a crowd with her friend and to let the music move her, nothing else.

What MJ had not thought about was the fact that, in a moment of weakness, she had informed Liz of her stupid, stupid little crush on Peter Parker. And now, here they were.

Liz linked arms with MJ as the various members of the party moved to go upstairs. Parker and Leeds had been lost to the crowd, and so MJ whirled on Liz immediately. "What the f-"

"What?" Liz said innocently. "I can't help it if Betty invites people, I-"

"You knew that she has a thing for Leeds, who is basically attached to Parker by a fused kidney or something!" MJ's eyes flashed as they began to walk up a staircase to a loft that was spread out, with lots of chairs and couches. "You brought me here because you knew he would be here!"

"I brought you here because you're my friend," Liz replied firmly. "I made sure he was here for the same reason. So come on, take advantage of it."

"I'm not his type, I'm not you," MJ pointed out. "And even if I was, I'm not the girl who comes to parties and does stuff like that."

"I'm not asking you to make out with him," Liz pointed out, and MJ made a strangled, choked noise. Liz put up a hand before she could interject. "I'm asking you to talk to him, you know? Just hang out, get to know each other-" Well, MJ already knew his biggest secret after five minutes on Tumblr conspiracy blogs, so she didn't quite know how that would work out. "-grab something to drink-" No freaking way, MJ had no idea who had been near the punch or what they had put in it. "-flirt."

MJ shot Liz a look as her friend took a seat on a couch, one of the many that had been arranged into a large circle. The seats were filling up with people so that everyone was facing one another. "No way," she deadpanned.

Liz gave MJ big eyes, saying, "Come on, MJ, this could be so worth it!"

"But you don't get it," MJ replied, shaking her head slightly. "That isn't how I do it, it's how you do it. I can't do that, especially not with Parker. It would feel... Wrong."

Liz nodded. Though her lips were pressed together, there was a gleam of encouragement in her eyes. "Then do what feels right."

Before MJ could respond, one voice rose above the others to stop conversation in the room. MJ glanced across the circle, and almost immediately her eyes found the dark, chocolate irises of Peter Parker. He quickly tore his eyes from her, but she could tell he had been staring, probably looking at her sudden change of style. Suddenly, MJ could not focus on what the host-a tall girl with long, dark hair- was saying.

"...So, here are the rules," the host announced from her seat on a large armchair. "Number one, dares have to be something that you can do in the house, tonight. It's boring when you give dares that we can't watch happen." MJ watched as the girl, who was probably a few years older, arched an eyebrow. "Second, no stupid truth questions. If you give any such question, you have to- well, that actually brings us to our third order of business." MJ leaned forward, interested. She hadn't been to a party that she had really participated in, and the rules to this game were interesting. Still, nothing could prepare her for what would happen next.

"If you refuse a dare, or give someone else a dumb truth, or dare, then you have to remove one article of clothing."

MJ's eyebrows shot up. Excited murmurs began to rise from around the circle. Ned looked like he might pass out, and Peter was blinking slowly in shock.

"Stuff like hats doesn't count. Everyone takes off their shoes and socks now before the game begins. Otherwise, it's just dull." The girl grinned over at a group of girls who MJ assumed were her friends, and they all shared excited looks. "Now, to begin. Who would like to go first?"

As she took off her booties, MJ watched as a boy, one who appeared a few years older than herself, tossed his hand up. The girl nodded to him and sat back down as his eyes scanned the circle. "You," he said, eyes finally landing on MJ. There was a little smirk on his lips. "Truth or dare."

MJ narrowed her eyes as she looked at the unfamiliar guy. He had a messy head of blonde hair and bright eyes, ones that followed her in a way that made her uncomfortable. Slowly, she said, "Dare."

"Sit in my lap for the rest of the game."

MJ's eyes widened for a moment as the guy and his friends jeered. Across the circle, Ned's mouth dropped open and Peter looked absolutely murderous. He was moving to stand, but before he could, MJ stood herself. For a moment, the guy smirked at her, but MJ did not move towards him. She began to shrug off her jacket, taking her sweet time as she met the guy's gaze with a stone-cold stare. A quiet chorus of "ooh"s went around the circle as MJ removed her jacket and sat back down, still maintaining eye contact. There was a little smirk on Liz's face now as they looked over the moron. His bright eyes were narrowed in frustration and embarrassment.

The air was cool on MJ's bare shoulders now, but she didn't care. MJ would rather have done almost anything besides sitting in his lap. She glanced across the circle until her eyes found Ned's. He tried to look away to avoid her gaze, but MJ asked, "Leeds, truth or dare?"

Slowly, carefully, he raised his eyes to hers, and MJ saw fear in them. "I- um, well. Dare." Ned gulped, glancing over at Peter. MJ took a moment to let him sweat in his decision while she watched him immediately regret it. The choice was one that only an insane man would make. Said spider-ling was staring at her in awe, and the way that his eyes lingered on her caused her to take a sharp breath and turn back to Ned.

"Great. Hold Betty's hand for the rest of the game," MJ ordered him, her tone sugary sweet. Ned's eyes widened, and he took a deep breath. Slowly, Ned crossed from his spot beside Peter, making his way to the blonde girl on the other side of the circle. Betty's cheeks were red, but she did not seem upset as Ned sat down beside her and took her hand. Ned glanced up at MJ, and for a moment she could see surprise and excitement in his eyes.

"Okay," he said, trying, and failing, to keep a cool tone. "Um, Peter, truth or dare?"

The whole circle of people watched as Peter took a moment to think. "Truth," he finally said, and several people actually groaned.

"Come on, Peter, that's boring," Liz teased... When he glanced their way, MJ could have sworn his cheeks turned slightly pink.

"Right," Ned said carefully. "So, um… who do you find most attractive in this room?"

MJ's heart sank. Ned was offering him an easy way out since everyone from Midtown Tech knew that Peter liked Liz. Yeah, these people weren't from Midtown, but he also would never see them again. They also wouldn't know that it was an easy question to answer and that there would be no real-life consequences. So, when Peter's cheeks turned bright red, MJ was surprised. Yeah, it was a crush, but everyone here knew about it, even the object of said infatuation.

What surprised MJ even more was when he began to fumble with the buttons on his shirt, shrugging it off.

MJ was pretty sure that if she hadn't been in control of herself, her jaw would be somewhere on the floor. What was he playing at, willingly giving up the easy question in favor of sort-of-stripping? Not that MJ was going to complain. She could see a hint of his muscled chest beneath the white undershirt he wore. Damn it! Why did he have to do that, to make her head spin and her heart race? MJ quickly dragged her gaze away from Peter.

"Okay…" Peter said slowly. "Um, Liz." MJ's friend looked up at him, raising an eyebrow. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare," Liz replied firmly. As Peter thought about it, there was something like panic in his eyes. "Um… Right. I-I dare you… to, uh… chug three glasses of punch, one after the other?" MJ almost started laughing, but instead, she only looked at Parker, amused. She could tell he knew it was a long-shot, but his eyes were hopeful, nonetheless.

"Oh, come on, Peter," Liz laughed softly. "I don't think that's… I don't know. Risky enough." There was a knowing glimmer in Liz's eyes, and MJ was confused for a moment.

"Agreed," the host replied. "You know the drill, one piece of clothing's got to go."

When MJ realized what was happening, she turned to Liz with wide eyes. Her best friend looked back at her with mischief in her eyes, and MJ was ready to slap her. Liz took in the red undertone to MJ's cheeks, appearing satisfied. "Thank me later," she whispered.

"Um, but-" Peter tried to interject from across the room.

"Nope," the girl said dismissively, moving on to Liz. "Your turn."

"You little-" MJ began, but she was cut off by the movement across the circle. Peter swallowed and tugged his shirt up from behind, and MJ's breath hitched. Holy crap . She knew he was muscular. He had to be if he wanted to keep superhero-ing, but MJ had never seen him without a shirt. Now, she was struggling to focus. There were appreciative murmurs around the room, and even the host raised an eyebrow. Peter's face was flushed as he set his shirt down with his jacket, and he avoided everyone's gaze as he seated himself. MJ was immensely grateful for this because it meant that he did not look up to see her gawking like a fish.

When MJ turned back to Liz, her cheeks warm, she saw the devilish smirk in her eyes. MJ could tell that Liz was enjoying playing matchmaker, and now… Crap .

"MJ, truth or dare?" Liz asked. MJ couldn't tell which would be worse. What would Liz have her do? All bets were off, and MJ was terrified. What if she picked truth and Liz made her admit the way she felt about Peter? MJ couldn't afford to skip on another dare, all that she had now was her top or her pants, and neither was a good option.

"I-uh. Dare, I guess," MJ said slowly, attempting not to appear rattled. "Not that it matters."

Liz smirked, turning back to the group. "I dare you to kiss Peter," she announced. Several quiet laughs and "ooh"s went around the circle, and MJ could feel everyone watching her. They barely knew who Peter was, but they knew that this dare meant something. It was the craziest one they had had all night.

MJ's heart raced, and she struggled for air while everyone watched intently. She knew that her face was composed, but if she hesitated too long it would let them all know how rattled she was. No matter what she did, everyone would know kissing Peter meant something to her. MJ's face burned at the thought

She had imagined kissing Parker before. She had imagined kissing him senseless when he did that stupid little hair thing or looked at her too long. She hated that he had such an effect on her. He wasn't supposed to affect her like this, screw him!

Wait, no. Definitely do not screw him. Bad idea.

"MJ?" Liz prompted, and MJ's gaze snapped upwards.

Her eyes locked with Peter's, and for a moment MJ's insides vanished into a storm of tingling butterflies. Her pulse pounded so hard she couldn't feel it, and her eyes traveled Peter's face. His wide eyes were locked on hers, but they did not hold fear, or shock, or disgust. Instead, they held the same intensity MJ's eyes, with a little glimmer of that same awe that had been there before. It was then that she knew.

He felt the same way that he made her feel.

So, carefully, MJ took one step towards him. Peter drew in a breath. She took another step, then another. Her eyes scanned his face. With each step, it held more and more wonder, as if he wanted to look at her forever. MJ watched as his cheeks became pink, then red, and a little smirk played with her lips.

MJ took her time as she walked over to him, and the whole room was silent. Electricity had MJ locked in its current as she drew, finally, close to Peter. Carefully, MJ leaned over towards the seated boy. He was barely breathing, and MJ watched for a moment as the brown eyes she had dreamed about for so long flickered, blinking up at her several times. His breath was warm against her cheek, and carefully, she brought a hand to his face to caress it.

Peter tilted his face slightly to lean into her touch, and MJ's heart turned to caramel sauce in her chest. For a moment, she lightly stroked his face with her fingertip, and she took the opportunity to study every inch of Peter Parker's face. Her eyes traveled from his dark curls to his chocolate eyes, then down to his parted lips. He attempted to speak, stalled, and then a husky whisper left him. "MJ, I-I… You don't h-have to-"

"Shh," she interrupted him, and the smirk that played with her lips only grew larger. "Shut up, Parker." MJ leaned in, bringing their faces so close that she could have counted every one of his dark eyelashes. She allowed their noses to brush, just slightly, watching his eyes for a reaction. He took a sharp breath and stared back at her with amazement. MJ blinked once, twice, and then the smirk faded. For a moment, MJ maintained the proximity to Peter Parker, inhaling the smell of mint and May's laundry detergent and allowing the sparks from their connection to wash over her.

And then, MJ brushed her lips against his cheek.

When she pulled back, his eyes fluttered open in astonishment. MJ's red lipstick had left a little mark on the skin by the corner of his mouth, and she lingered for a moment over him. MJ's curls fell into the space between them as they made eye contact for just a moment. "They didn't say where to kiss you," MJ breathed, and his eyes did not leave hers. A little grin of his own slowly spread across his lips. "When I kiss you, Parker, it won't be just a stupid dare."

For a moment, neither looked away. Then, in a breathless voice, he whispered, "I'd like that."

MJ straightened and turned to walk back to her seat beside Liz. There was lots of lively chatter as she did so. Ned was currently staring at Peter as if the boy had announced his run for the presidency, and there was quiet, appreciative laughter as MJ returned to her seat.

MJ's friend was grinning at her, and there was a satisfaction in her eyes that danced a gavotte with pure excitement. "Oh my God, that was perfect," Liz whispered as soon as MJ was within earshot. "How did you do that with just a kiss on the cheek? You're going to have to teach-"

"If you pull that again I will kill you," MJ fired back in a soft voice, but the harshness of the words were undercut by MJ's breathless tone.

Liz smiled, and there was warmth in her gaze as she said, "You really like him."

For a moment, MJ's chest twinged in panic. She was fairly sure that it would be like that whenever anyone mentioned Peter now. There were people from Midtown here, namely Betty, and MJ knew that this would get out somehow. But then, she thought about the little gasp he had made when her lips touched his skin. That was when MJ realized that she didn't care what anyone said. All she could think about was the feeling of Peter Parker's eyes locked with hers and her hand cupping his cheek.

"Yeah… Yeah. I do."


End file.
